OBJECTIVES: For biosimilars, payers typically use tendering to identify the most economically advantageous products, using award criteria that may differ from the lowest price. This research aimed to understand the trends in biosimilar tender award criteria in addition to price, and to identify opportunities for product differentiation.

METHODS: Tenders Electronic Daily archive was searched for twelve biosimilars approved in the EU since 2017 (adalimumab, bevacizumab, etanercept, infliximab, insulin [aspart, glargine and lispro], ranibizumab, rituximab, teriparatide, trastuzumab and pegfilgrastim). Contract notices published in five countries (Belgium, Denmark, Italy, France and Spain) from January 2020 to May 2022 were analysed to collect award criteria.

RESULTS: The search yielded 538 tenders with disclosed award criteria. Most were published in Spain (n=180) and Belgium (n=156), followed by Italy (n=108), France (n=74) and Denmark (n=20). Cost criterium weighting over 70% was most observed in tenders for ranibizumab (85%), adalimumab (66%), teriparatide (61%), and least for insulins (37%), infliximab (37%), and bevacizumab (39%). The importance of criteria beyond price was similar across all countries, ranging from 44% (Denmark) to 50% (Belgium, France). Criteria other than price were product-related (technical product and packaging quality, safety, drug stability), company-related (commercial response, services, corporate social responsibility), supply guarantee and delivery time. Most award criteria beyond price focused on the technical/packaging quality, services and supply guarantee. Technical product quality was mostly used for differentiation in Belgium (40%) and Spain (34%), while package quality (e.g., latex warning, light protection) was used more in Spain (64%). Services (e.g., staff training, replacement of expired items) and supply guarantee were used more often in Belgium (82% and 80%, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS: It is important for biosimilar manufacturers to investigate all possible differentiators prior to tendering to ensure highest probability of success, leveraging criteria such as technical product/package quality, services and supply guarantee, especially in markets like Belgium and Spain.